1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates generally to identity verification, and, more particularly, relates to identity verification in Internet-related personal computer transactions.
2. Description of the Related Art
Persons and businesses use the Internet to facilitate transactions. While many of these transactions are between honest parties, some persons fraudulently use personal computers and the Internet to obtain goods, services, or both goods and services (hereinafter “products”) without payment, and to induce payment from others for products that were never provided. Additionally, some unauthorized persons access and use services provided via the Internet that were intended for a specific audience or that require fees for access.
As used herein, a “personal computer” is a computer designed for an individual user, such as those used in homes and in businesses (e.g., IBM PC Compatibles, Apple Macintosh, etc.).
In a typical purchase transaction, a buyer seeks to purchase products from a provider of products. The provider establishes a web site that the buyer may use to make a purchase. To make the purchase, the buyer uses the buyer's computer keyboard to enter the buyer's personal information and payment source information into a web page of the provider's web site. The buyer's personal information may comprise such things as the buyer's name, residential address, shipping address, telephone number, fax number, and email address. The payment source information may comprise a bank account number, a credit card number, and other identification information suitable for identifying a source for payment. Upon receipt of the buyer's personal information and payment information, the web site initiates a suitable verification process that uses the buyer's personal and payment source information. The verification process is intended to determine whether the buyer is fraudulently representing his or her identity. If the verification process determines that the buyer is not fraudulently representing his or her identity, the provider will obtain payment and provide the products, either by shipping the tangible products, by providing access to services via the Internet, or by other means (e.g., establishing travel reservations, or the like). This verification process has drawbacks. A thief seeking to perpetrate a fraud may circumvent the verification process by obtaining a third-party's personal and payment source information. Upon obtaining this information, the thief may enter the third-party's personal and payment source information into the provider's web site's web page. After the verification process incorrectly determines that the thief is not fraudulently representing his or her identity, the provider will obtain payment from the third-party and provide the products to the thief.
In another transaction, an Internet intermediary web site acts as an intermediary between a buyer and a seller. In a typical situation, a seller uses the seller's computer keyboard to enter the product description, the seller's personal information, and payment destination information into a web page of the intermediary's web site. The seller's personal information may comprise such things as the seller's name, residential address, shipping address, telephone number, fax number, and email address. The payment destination information may comprise a bank account number, a credit card number, name and mailing address, and other identification information suitable for identifying a destination for payment. The intermediary's web site then allows potential buyers to browse the product descriptions that have been posted by the sellers.
When a buyer wants to purchase the products, the intermediary's web site facilitates the sale. This process has drawbacks. A thief seeking to perpetrate a fraud enters false information as his or her seller's personal information or payment destination information. With this false identity, the thief may enter a product description. That description may induce a buyer to send a payment. The thief obtains the payment, but never provides the products.
In another situation, a thief wanting to perpetrate a fraud obtains and uses a third-party's personal information, payment destination information, or both a third-party's personal information and payment destination information. With this false identity, the thief obtains payment from the buyer, but the thief never provides the products.
In another transaction, a service provider provides services via the Internet. In a typical situation, a user registers with the service provider's web site. To register, the user enters the user's personal information, and obtains a password and user name. The user's personal information comprises such things as the user's name, birth date, age, gender, residential address, mailing address, telephone number, fax number, and email address. The user obtains a password and user name, either by choosing his or her own password and user name or by receiving a password and user name from the service provider. The user obtains use of the service provider's web site via entry of the user name and password using the user's keyboard. This process has drawbacks. A thief wanting to obtain use of the service provider's web site need only obtain a third-party's user name and password to access the service provider's web site. Not only is the thief an unauthorized user, but the third-party may be billed for the service that the third party did not request or access.